Joe McComb will return as the city’s mayor, and two new faces will join the City Council after winning the midterm runoff elections Dec. 18.
McComb defeated Michael Hall, who, at 28, was the youngest person running for City Council this year. His 20 percent of the vote in the Nov. 6 midterm among a field of five candidates turned into 40 percent in the runoff.
“In August, twenty-five people in the whole city knew who I was,” Hall said at his election night watch party. “And here I am in a runoff for mayor.”
Four of Corpus Christi’s five City Council districts were also on the runoff ballot.
In District 1, incumbent Everett Roy defeated Joy Miller with 46 percent  of the vote. Roy was appointed to the council in April to replace Carolyn Vaughn, who was appointed to the Nueces County Commissioners Court to replace Mike Pulsey, who resigned to run for county judge. Republican Pulsey was defeated by Democrat Barbara Canales in the midterms.
Councilman Ben Molina will return for a second term in office after defeating Sylvia Campos. He received 59 percent of the vote to Campos’s 40 percent.
New faces won races for Districts 3 and 5.
Gil Hernandez won 65 percent of the vote to represent District 5, defeating Paul Thurman, who received 34 percent.
Roland Barrera defeated Eric Cantu to replace Lucy Rubio in District 3. Rubio stepped down to become a justice of the peace. Barrera won 54 percent of the vote to Cantu’s 45 percent.
The District 3 race put the city in an unkind spotlight, garnering coverage in Texas Monthly after one candidate prematurely cut Rubio’s retirement cake then smeared her name in the icing. That same candidate was later indicted for aggravated promotion of prostitution, a felony charge. Another candidate on the ballot died before the election.
After the midterms left two of the five candidates without 50-plus percent of the vote, Cantu sued to have his opponent taken off the ballot. Cantu said Barrera did not file his financial forms by deadline, which should disqualify him from the race. Barrera said it was an honest mistake and quickly filed the documents.
An outside district judge was brought in to hear the case, ruling against the motion to remove Barrera’s name. Barrera will represent District 3 for the next two years after receiving 55 percent of the vote.
Only 10 percent of 184,000 registered voters turned out for the runoffs. In total, 18,500 people chose the mayor and four seats on the council. New members will be seated in January.
The new City Council will consist of Mayor Joe McComb; at-large members and incumbents Paulette Guajardo, Michael Hunter, and Rudy Garza; incumbent Everett Roy, District 1; incumbent Ben Molina, District 2; newcomer Roland Barrera, District 3; incumbent Greg Smith, District 4; and newcomer Gil Hernandez, District 5.